Fiume o morte!
Igor Bezinović / Croatia, Italy, Slovenia / 2025 / 112 min
An ingenious and humorous approach that uses the nonverbal language of film as a therapeutic tool for healing the collective trauma still alive in the memory of the Croatian city of Rijeka (Fiume). The film boldly unlocks the taboo subject of the fascist dictatorship imposed by the Italian general who assaulted the city in 1919.
About the film
Igor Bezinović turns the occupation of Fiume (today Rijeka) by Italian fascist commander Gabriele D’Annunzio into a playful re-enactment, crafted as an ingenious ‘film-lesson.’ The city was invaded in 1919, and the story of the 16 bloody months of occupation is told not only through historical archives but also through the eyes of today’s inhabitants, speakers of the Fiuman dialect, who take part in amateur re-enactments and uniquely humorous scenes. The film makes the past resonate with the present through a visual, temporal, and linguistic play, highlighting the tragic irony of history — as well as its potential as a warning for today’s Europe.
ProducerVanja Jambrović, Tibor Keser
SoundEric Guerrino Nardin
CinematographyGregor Božič
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